Sleepy Head Day
Always the last one in the family to wake up and climb out of bed? This event might be something to be aware of lest it result in a rude awakening of being doused with water as part of this Finnish tradition!
How to Celebrate Sleepy Head Day
Take a look at a few ideas for enjoying and celebrating Sleepy Head Day, whether in the Finnish tradition or otherwise:
Douse a Late Sleeper with Water
People in Finland might already do this, but others around the world are invited to participate as well. Just grab a bucket of water and throw it on the person who sleeps the lastest. A less messy form of the tradition might be to wake them with a wet cloth on the face.
Of course, it would only be fair to provide a warning the night before so everyone knows what to expect!
Visit Finland
Although this event certainly didn’t start out as a tourist attraction, it might still serve as an excellent excuse to make some travel plans to Finland! National Sleepy Head Day takes place during summer, which is an excellent time to visit this Nordic country.
Start by flying into the capital, Helsinki, and enjoy some interesting attractions there. Then head over to Naantali, to the west, and catch the annual tradition of tossing a celebrity into the sea!
Sleep In
While the Finnish celebrate National Sleepy Head Day by encouraging everyone to get up early, there’s always the freedom to interpret this day differently.
Perhaps some folks might even take it as an opportunity to have a bit of an extra rest and sleep in later than usual.
History of Sleepy Head Day
Observed in Finland, this venerable day brings with it hundreds of years of history dating all the way back to the Middle Ages. While its first written record was on a calendar from a hymnal dating back to 1652, the tradition of celebrating Sleepy Head Day certainly took place prior to this time.
Originally, this event was celebrated on June 27 but in 1709, Sleepy Head Day was pushed back a month and that’s when it is still celebrated today.
Related to a Finnish legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus. The tradition comes from the belief that the last person to wake up on this day would be lazy and unproductive for the rest of the year. With that in mind, this final sleeper was often roused with a bucket of cold water or, even better, being thrown into a lake or the sea!
While its roots are in religious literature, the event is celebrated more informally, whether between family members at home or in the local community.
In more recent years, one particular town in Finland, Naantali, participates with Sleepy Head Day by choosing a celebrity who will be thrown into the sea from the city’s port.
These celebrities have included city mayors, writers, political figures, artists and more. Scheduled to take place at 7am, this is hardly punishment for sleeping in late, though!
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